Tower and Town, April 2025 (view the full edition)Effects Of Medical DramasHow do medical dramas affect doctor and patient expectations in real life situations? City Hospital, which aired in 1951, is often considered to be the first televised medical drama. Even after all this time, this specific genre of television is still hugely popular among a wide range of people. A few famous medical dramas include: House, Scrubs, ER, Casualty, with the most notable being Grey's Anatomy, a series which first aired in 2005 and which is still going. What makes this genre so popular, and does it affect real life health-care expectations in a positive or negative way? On the surface, medical dramas do not seem all that appealing. They feature a location and topic which to most people should seem mundane and relatively familiar. Furthermore, upsetting, gory scenes do not sound particularly great for daytime watching. One reason for their appeal is that they are largely relatable. The shows feature a high level of suspense and drama while remaining tangible to the viewers. This, in a way, makes them all the more tense and the situations are plausible to those watching. Scientifically, our brains find it hard to look away from disaster. While being unarguably popular, medical dramas do not always affect patients and doctors in positive ways. The so-called 'Grey's Anatomy Effect' is defined by The National Library of Medicine as unrealistic expectations, like those caused by misleading and unrealistically optimistic medical stories, which often lead to worse health outcomes; as a result, mortality rates increase. Shows such as Grey's Anatomy and ER do strive for accuracy by having physician consultants; however, inaccuracies are still common. CPR, a vital part of first aid, has been found to be performed highly inadequately on TV, while resuscitation is successful a lot more than in real life. As well as this, a 2018 study was conducted screening 269 Grey's Anatomy episodes versus 4,812 patients from the National Trauma Data Bank National Program Sample. The results showed that in Grey's Anatomy, mortality after injury was notably higher than in real life, with 22% of patients dying in the show compared to just 7% in real life. This makes viewers more anxious about hospital visits, and makes the doctors appear far less competent. The study also found that after arrival to the ER, a massive 71% of TV patients were taken directly to the operating room, compared with a relative minority of 25% in the NTDB sample. This can cause frustration in real life patients when they are not taken to the operating room as quickly as they believe they should be. It is fair to say that these factors do add to the drama and watchability of the series, however because so many people get health information from television (for example a survey of geriatric patients demonstrated that 42% of older adults named television as their primary source of health information), inconsistencies such as these can have a negative effect on both the patients and the medical professionals involved. Opposingly, medical dramas can provide awareness to people who otherwise would have incredibly limited medical knowledge. A study has found that 17% of viewers were inspired to speak to their doctors about an issue they had seen on Grey's Anatomy. The show can also help to discourage prejudices which are caused by ignorance of medical facts. This is demonstrated in an episode of Grey's Anatomy in which a young HIV-positive woman who is pregnant asks for an abortion, before learning that with proper treatment she has a 98 percent chance of delivering a baby who is HIV-free. A study surveyed a random group of viewers before the watching of the episode, a week after watching the episode, and then six weeks after watching the episode. One of the questions asked in the survey was 'Is it irresponsible for a woman who knows she is HIV positive to have a baby?'. Before watching the show, 61 percent answered yes, a week after watching the show, only 34 percent said it was irresponsible and six weeks after the show aired, 47 percent of viewers said it was irresponsible. Lack of knowledge leads to unfair judgement and prejudices, and shows such as Grey's Anatomy have helped to tackle this issue in the past, proving that they can have positive effects on watchers. In conclusion, it is important for viewers to remember that the shows are not documentaries, and that this should be taken into account when medical 'facts' are mentioned. At the same time, viewers should make sure that they talk to doctors or other medical professionals about any issues discussed within the series which concern them. As a species, we love drama so I am sure shows such as these will remain popular into the future. Matilda B |